Guglielmo Vicario: Tottenham lacked 'effort and mentality' in Champions League draw with Monaco

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·22 Oktober 2025

Guglielmo Vicario: Tottenham lacked 'effort and mentality' in Champions League draw with Monaco

Italian came to the visitors’ rescue countless times

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Guglielmo Vicario said that Tottenham lacked “the effort and mentality” required in the Champions League as they were fortunate to escape with a 0-0 draw at Monaco.

The Italian was Spurs’ hero at the Stade Louis II, making save after save to deny the Ligue 1 side what would have been a deserved victory on manager Sebastien Pocognoli’s home debut.

Thomas Frank’s side were poor throughout, especially in the final third, where they hardly worked Philipp Kohn in the home net.

Folarin Balogun and Takumi Minamino were the two that were denied most by Vicario, who was in inspired form to salvage a point for his side, who maintain their unbeaten record in Europe’s top competition by the skin of their teeth.

Speaking post-match, Vicario was bitterly disappointed with the performances of his team-mates in front of him.

“Sometimes you’re needed and today was definitely the night,” he told TNT Sports.

“[It was] not the best performance from us, so a lot to work on and learn from, because the level in the Champions League is very high. If you miss some basics, it’s hard to compete with a good team.

“I think everyone who plays in the backline is a Champions League player. It’s not about the changes.

“Tonight, it was about the effort and the mentality; the awareness of danger that you need to have in some situations. Tonight, we lacked a little bit of that.”

Monaco continued their momentum from the first half into the second period, peppering the Spurs goal, but they found Vicario in a determined mood to keep them out.

“It’s a point that we have to take,” Vicario continued.

“It’s a tough point because we had to battle and suffer a lot. Credit to Monaco for what they showed. Today they were better than us.

“We need to learn because we have the capability to do better. We cannot lack in the basics, in effort and running. It’s a big learning [curve].”

Spurs face Everton this weekend as they return to Premier League action, where they will be looking to put the 2-1 home defeat by Aston Villa - and this performance - behind them.